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A podcast where Natalie and Cherrie discuss Chinese history and stuff.We think we're funny but we're probably not.Episodes every other Sunday
79 Episodes
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We finally meet everyone's favorite guy (Song Jiang), and learn about song dynasty interrogation techniques.
This episode delves into Chinese stamps/seals/chops (印章), exploring the origins, ritualization, and various cultural conventions associated with this ancient practice.Given their existence predating the invention of paper in China, what surfaces did ancient Chinese court officials typically stamp upon? Did different dynasties enforce distinct rules regarding stamps? Was the loss of an emperor's jade seals believed to signify the loss of the mandate of heaven? In the late Qing dynasty, the penalty for misusing the stamp could be as severe as death. Was this penalty genuinely enforced, or was it akin to many other historical (and current day) Chinese laws—a fallback scapegoat system?Tune in to uncover the answers!
In this episode we discuss the Qing Dynasty's 'Self Strengthening Movement' of roughly 1861-1890. Recognizing the superiority of european weapons, technology, and scientific knowledge, the Qing Dynasty attempted to adopt and integrate them into an otherwise unchanged Confucian bureaucracy. Ambitious Westerners flocked to the country, lured by Qing silver, and with the support of towering Chinese figures such as Li Hongzhang and Cixi, helped the Qing reach a level of power and prosperity that had not been seen for a century. However, in resisting deeper, more structural changes, the Qing Dynasty would place itself on the wrong side of history, and eventually fall at the hands of more dynamic revolutionaries and reformers.
Hello everyone. More water margin.Zhang Yhi has to make life changes, and we learn how to motivate your police inspectors.
In this episode we get to the long awaited robbery of the birthday gifts (worth 100,000 strings of cash).Will our 7 (or 8) brave heroes succeed?
Hello Everyone! The exciting conclusion to our yellow river discussions. In this episode we discuss the near century where active management of the river was abandoned in the late Qing Dynasty, and the Communist party's attempts to return it to order.We also touch on modern PRC water management techniques, which often involve redirecting water from more affluent areas to less politically sensitive ones.
The plot thickens as Wu Yong seeks out the three Ruan brothers to join the dream team to rob the birthday treasure caravan worth a hundred thousand strings of cash. Could he persuade the three gallant men using this sleek tongue? In this episode, we also meet a real wizard named "Dragon in the Clouds". These 7 (or 8) men are being brought together by fate. In this episode we discuss (more!) Chinese social etiquette, how as bad as peasant Chinese men had it, peasant women had it worse, and more.
Hello it's Ch 14 and a plot is starting to heat up.Can our unlikely heroes find 7 (or 8) bold men to help them steal an entire year's worth of bribe money?!
Hello everyone. It's chapter 13. In this episode we discuss the specifics of Chinese nepotism, and how military command works in the Song Dynasty.
Our story continues on with a new main character, Yang Zhi.Learn about grotesque rocks, how to bribe people in Song Dynasty China, and why its so dangerous to sell your sword.
In Episode 11 of water margin we discuss Lin Chong's continued fall from grace, the dangers of failed scholars, and why all the bad boys in the Song Dynasty are eating beef.Article Mentioned:"Beefy Outlaws: Beef Consumption in Water Margin and Its Song-Yuan Antecedents"https://brill.com/view/journals/joch/7/3/article-p342_6.xml?language=en
1This is a special episode from Cherrie and Natalie's travels. Tune in to find out why we highly recommend you make a trip to Kinmen Island (and Taiwan!). In this episode we talked about Kinmen's history, culture and politices. Check out our episode about Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor (金门高粱酒): Baijiu: The World's Favorite Spirit 白酒历史谈
In this episode Lin Chong gets really mad (and drunk).
The Grand Canal, a waterway system that travels vast regions of China is famous today as a UNESCO world heritage site. In this episode we discuss its complicated history. Why build a canal? What was the labor cost - measured in countless lives - that built an emperor's vision? Does the UNESCO World Heritage Convention transcends cultural nationalism or reinforce it? Tune in to this first episode about the Grand Canal and its history.
Hello It's Chapter 9!!!Lin Chong continues his journey and we meet Tough Guy enthusiast and sponsor, Chai Jin.We also talk in great, exhaustive detail, on the cultural significance of griddle cakes, and special soups.
In this episode we talk about the "high reward / high risk" stage of Imperial Chinese hydraulic management during the Late Ming to late Qing dynasties. Vast amounts of money, material, and expertise were poured into keeping the yellow river forced into a narrow, rapid channel. These efforts allowed the entire vast Chinese canal and irrigation system to function (including the grand canal), but at the price of constant vigilance. The river never rested, and a single season of negligence could undo years of careful maintenance. We also discuss the men who managed this system "Confucian Engineers" and use the 1841 levee breach at Kaifeng of an example of how the system operated and responded to emergencies.If you'd like to see illustrated examples of some of the tools and methods described in this episode, the National University of Taiwan has a digitized copy of a Qing Dynasty illustrated river management handbook here:https://taiwanebook.ncl.edu.tw/zh-tw/book/NTUL-9900013371/readerFor additional reading on this topic I also suggest "Controlling the Dragon: Confucian Engineers and the Yellow River in Later Imperial China" by Randall A Dodgen.
In this short chapter we deal with the sentencing of Lin Chong after he is framed by Gao Qiu.Despite the best intentions of the local Magistrate, personal power and political connections is always greater than the law in imperial China.We also discuss the finer points of Imperial chinese punishments.
Lin Chong enters the scene, and we also we learn one of the great struggles facing tough dudes in the Northern Song Dynasty, having a hot wife and a lecherous boss.Also discussed: Sworn BrotherhoodCrowsSchemesStrange men selling swords in an offer to frame you in an elaborate conspiracy.As mentioned here is the paper referenced in the episode:https://pages.ucsd.edu/~dkjordan/scriptorium/jyebay.html
In this episode we discuss China's sorrow, the famous and infamous yellow river (黄河). Stretching through China's north eastern floodplain, it both birthed early chinese civilization, and put it through some of its most harrowing challenges.In part one we discuss the geography of the yellow river, its early myths, and how the complex interaction between rainfall, erosion, and human action can create extremely deadly disaster events.Interesting books on the Yellow River:The Yellow River, a Natural and Unnatural Historyhttps://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300238334/the-yellow-river/The Water Kingdom:https://www.amazon.com/Water-Kingdom-PHILIP-BALL/dp/1784701548/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
In this episode we continue the adventures of Sagacious Lu, and meet up with some old friends. He finally reaches the great Xiangguo monastery and is put in an important position there.We also touch on:Division of Buddhist MonksKitchen GodsThe Commentaries of 金圣叹Being a Man of Valor as opposed to just a person who knows how to fight.Paper on the Monk System in the Ming and Qing Dynastieshttp://rdbk1.ynlib.cn:6251/qw/Paper/635647Commentaries by 金圣叹http://www.guoxue123.com/xiaosuo/jd/jpshz/index.htm
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Yup (^^,) I'm a DEE-votie.... Devoted to Judge Dee and Robert van Gulik.